moderate
Americanadjective
-
kept or keeping within reasonable or proper limits; not extreme, excessive, or intense.
a moderate price.
-
of medium quantity, extent, or amount.
a moderate income.
- Synonyms:
- average
-
mediocre or fair.
moderate talent.
-
calm or mild, as of the weather.
-
of or relating to moderates, as in politics or religion.
- Antonyms:
- radical
noun
-
moderates
plural
-
a person who is moderate in opinion or opposed to extreme views and actions, especially in politics or religion.
- Antonyms:
- radical
-
(usually initial capital letter) a member of a political party advocating moderate reform.
verb (used with object)
-
moderates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
moderated,
past participle, past
-
moderating
present participle
-
to reduce the excessiveness of; make less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous.
to moderate the sharpness of one's words.
-
to preside over or at (a public forum, meeting, discussion, etc.).
verb (used without object)
-
moderates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
moderated,
past participle, past
-
moderating
present participle
-
to become less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous.
-
to act as moderator; preside.
adjective
-
not extreme or excessive; within due or reasonable limits
moderate demands
-
not violent; mild or temperate
-
of average quality or extent
moderate success
noun
verb
-
to become or cause to become less extreme or violent
-
to preside over a meeting, discussion, etc
-
to act as an external moderator of the overall standards and marks for (some types of educational assessment)
-
physics to slow down (neutrons), esp by using a moderator
-
(tr) to monitor (the conversations in an on-line chatroom) for bad language, inappropriate content, etc
Synonym Usage
Moderate, temperate, judicious, reasonable all stress the avoidance of excess—emotional, physical, intellectual, or otherwise. Moderate implies response or behavior that is by nature not excessive: a moderate drinker, a moderate amount of assistance. Temperate, interchangeable with moderate in some general uses, usually stresses the idea of caution, control, or self-restraint: a surprisingly temperate response to the angry challenge. Judicious emphasizes prudence and the exercise of careful judgment: a judicious balance between freedom and restraint; judicious care to offend neither side. Reasonable suggests the imposition or adoption of limits derived from the application of reason or good sense: a reasonable price; a reasonable amount of damages allotted to each claimant. See allay.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
moderatesimple
-
moderatessimple
-
have moderatedperfect
-
has moderatedperfect
-
am moderatingprogressive
-
are moderatingprogressive
-
is moderatingprogressive
-
have been moderatingperfect progressive
-
has been moderatingperfect progressive
Past
-
moderatedsimple
-
had moderatedperfect
-
was moderatingprogressive
-
were moderatingprogressive
-
had been moderatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of moderate
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English moderate (adjective) moderaten (verb), from Latin moderātus (past participle of moderārī “to mitigate, restrain, control”), equivalent to moderā- verb stem ( see modest) + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
A moderate voter is someone who is politically speaking, in the center. In other words, they are not quite left or right, but somewhere in the middle. Moderate comes from the Latin for "medium sized," and as a noun and an adjective it means "middle, medium." If you get moderate rainfall, it's not too much and not too little. Goldilocks was known for her moderate tastes. As a verb, it means "to temper," or "to reduce from the extreme." If you moderate your speed while driving, you slow down a bit. If you moderate a discussion, you help two or more people have a reasonable conversation.
Vocabulary lists containing moderate
Liberty, Equality, Vocabulary: The French Revolution
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"The Flight of Icarus," Vocabulary from the myth
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"Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The eating pattern emphasizes green leafy vegetables; other vegetables; berries; nuts; whole grains; fish; beans; olive oil; and poultry, along with moderate wine consumption.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 1, 2026
The barrister outlined how an expert report had found that Mariano had a "moderate learning disability".
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
At the Bulwark, Sarah Longwell notes that a recent New York Times/Siena poll found El-Sayed with support from 8% of 2024 Trump voters, better than more moderate Democratic Senate contenders in Maine and New Hampshire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Other donors said they were inspired to give to moderate candidates because of concern that anti-Israel rhetoric could veer into attacks on Jews more broadly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
Then we took the 600 South exit, heading east, in moderate, midafternoon traffic.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Then, in the race’s final weeks, two other moderates dropped out and Crowley revived his campaign with the sitting Democratic governor’s endorsement.
From Slate ● Aug. 12, 2026
Throughout the campaign, Stevens argued that El-Sayed would not be able to defeat Rogers, a refrain some moderates repeated Wednesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
Among self-described moderates, Talarico’s lead is even more pronounced, with the Democrat ahead 54% to 20%.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026
But any nominee will have to unite Platner's wounded supporters with moderates, independents and women voters wary of a party that just watched its chosen candidate implode.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
It was obvious that they regarded us, the Rivonia Trialists, as moderates.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
South Korea’s headline inflation moderated last month but remained above the central bank’s 2% target, underscoring the challenge of taming price pressures stoked by the energy shock and artificial-intelligence boom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
September’s hour-long debate, taking place shortly before county elections officials begin mailing ballots to all the state’s registered voters, will be moderated by the cable network’s anchors Dana Bash and Jake Tapper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
It is the most attention a California gubernatorial contest has drawn since 2010, when “Today” show host Matt Lauer and NBC News Political Director Chuck Todd moderated nationally televised clashes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
His appearance was moderated by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who called Huang an "American treasure."
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
She gave him a little horn cup containing a hot potion whose bitterness was moderated by honey, and presently he lay back and fell deeply asleep.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
The pullback in prices largely reflects a perception that geopolitical risks are moderating, MUFG’s Soojin Kim writes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
For Chaudhuri, despite market expectations, the Fed should be holding rates, maintaining a level between 3.50% to 3.75% because inflation is actually moderating.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
"However, if inflation appears not to be moderating sufficiently, then I think we should act decisively to raise rates."
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
The man has achieved significant political capital without moderating anything he stands for.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
Nuah is behind me, being Mr. Nice Guy and not passing me but moderating his pace.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
